It shouldn't have happened
by MunchkinLovesYou
Summary: "He thought they had the all clear. He never should have let her go in first." Sharon is almost killed in the line of duty, and She, Andy, and Rusty deal with the aftermath. (Rusty/Sharon/Andy/ with others, respectively.) Multi-Chapter.
1. The incident

**Summary: "He thought they had the all clear. He never should have let her go in first." ** Sharon is put in harms way, and Andy tries to deal with the outcome. ** Told through flashbacks, if you're into that sort of thing. (May continue, not sure. For now it is a one-shot.) **

**Rating: T to be safe.**

**Pairing: Andy/Sharon with a bit of Rusty**

**A/N: This could go on, but I'm not sure. (See end note). PromptFic from my dear friend Lacey. "Sharon is hurt and Andy is sad about it. Maybe flashbacks." Honey, do be a little bit more specific next time. Vague is not my friend.  
ENJOY!**

* * *

He sat in the dark room, the rain pouring outside the window that overlooked Los Angeles.

_How cliché. _He thought.

It would have been silent if not for the steady beeping from the monitor by her bed. He allowed his gaze to travel to her, if only for a minute. If he looked longer, he thought too much and the image of her lying in a pool of blood would take over his mind.

He thought they had the all clear. He never should have let her go in first.

It had seemed like an easy job. -This one she insisted she wanted to be in the field for. – Sanchez and Sykes took the side entrance, and they took the rear while Provenza, Tao, and Buzz monitored the building. And either arrest the three men responsible for killing four children, or in one clean shot wipe them out. This one had hit too close to home for her. They never should have agreed to let her go in. He thought he had her covered. They had gone over the plan numerous times.

* * *

_Two hours earlier…_

"_So according to thermal imaging, and what we have taken down from research, there should be three entrances. Two are partially blocked by boxes, so they are only guarding one." Tao instructed their plan from the van they were standing by about a block away from the warehouse. "Julio and Amy, you will take the loading dock entrance. You'll be able to hide behind boxes and hopefully get a clean shot."_

"_How many weapons-"_

"_Keep your arms up, Captain."_

_She raised her arms up again. "How many weapons do they have in their possession?"_

"_They have at least two rifles, hunting style, and at least two shotguns, police issued." Flynn answered from where he was crouched beside Sharon, trying to thread a wire through her jacket. "But that's an estimate._

"_And the entrance that Andy and I will go into?" Sharon asked, and Andy almost dropped the wire he was threading at the use of his first name._

"_Doesn't have as many boxes, so you can't hide for long. Julio and Amy are like the snipers in this situation. You two are either the negotiators or the distraction. Depends on whether Flynn can keep his big head in the right place." Provenza snorted._

"_Hey, look who's talking old man…" Flynn started, but was silenced along with Provenza by a glare from their Captain, however playful. _

_Buzz opened the doors to the back of the van. "We're ready." He said. A simple fact, but one that could alter a life in one decision. Sharon took a deep breath and tugged on her Kevlar vest. Securing the Velcro, she checked her earwig then pulled out her handgun. Nodding to Julio and Amy, she followed Flynn to their designated spot. They all checked stats before quickly moving into the warehouse and crouching behind the boxes. Sharon hadn't seen the corner of one._

* * *

He walked over to her. She wasn't exactly asleep, but rather so pumped full of drugs that if not for the subtle rise and fall of her chest he might of thought her dead. He tentatively lifted the side of the thin blanket the hospital had provided and peered at the exposed ribcage of his superior officer. He she not been basically unconscious, he would have already been sitting in an FID office. He felt like he was overstepping his boundaries, but he had seen something while she was being looked over in the ambulance and he hadn't gotten to really look at it.

Sure enough, one rib up from the end of her ribcage began a large and ugly bruise. No wonder she had been having trouble breathing when they were crouched.

* * *

_His head whipped around as he heard someone curse and his eyes met one Sharon Raydor who was struggling to regain her breath as quietly as she could from where they were now crouched. He eyed where she was holding her left hand to her side and saw that part of her vest had not been secured correctly, leaving an open space on her side. He leaned over and secured it just as they heard the three men go silent and pull back the safety on their guns. Andy made eye contact with Sharon and cocked his head behind him for her to follow him behind the wooden crates. She nodded and they bend at the knees and shuffled closer to the men._

_Sharon was suddenly grabbed around the waist and pulled down hard onto the ground. Andy was still shuffling, and whoever had the arm around her sure bruise also had a very large and very sweaty hand over her mouth. Quickly going over their plan in her head, she tried to figure out where everyone was in the large room. She could still hear the voices of Tao and Provenza, though now that the man was dragging her into a small room in the back, the voices were becoming crackled. She knew better than to scream, though. As he rounded the corner she could see that it was a fourth man, not one of the three that they were pursuing. She was roughly thrown onto the floor and winced as her ribs once again took the blunt of the force. The man swung the door shut in shockingly silent ease. _

_She looked at the man's waist. He had her gun. She decided her best way out of this was to talk. If Buzz or someone could hear her, they might be able to locate her._

"_Who are you?" she asked in her practiced Captain Raydor voice. Evidently speaking was the wrong decision because he grabbed her throat and pinned her to the floor, her head making a terrifying sound as it hit the concrete. She was gasping for air again and felt tears prickling in her eyes. _

"_Shut up." He told her through gritted teeth. The man was huge; At least six foot two, with large muscles and arm-length tattoos. His dark hair was hard to place a color to in the dim room, the only light coming from a small rectangular window near the ceiling, though the sun was beginning to set._

_They waited in silence, with Sharon still on the floor for fear of throwing up; the world was spinning and she knew that she probably had a concussion. It hurt to breathe and it hurt to move. She kept hearing Andy's desperate calls out to her, but she couldn't answer back. Suddenly, without warning, two shots rang out, and Sanchez's voice yelled for one person to freeze. Through the door she could hear a scuffle, then the rattling of handcuffs before they began searching for her._

_The man ran towards her and yanked her up. She shut her eyes and gritted her teeth, the last thing she needed was to throw up. She needed at least a shrivel of dignity. The man removed her vest the purposefully reached an arm around her chest, securing her to him right where her ribs injured. Everything was a blur when the door was kicked in and her eyes opened wide and fearful as the man pressed the end of a gun to her temple._

_They say that when you are about to die your life flashes before your eyes. But what flashed before her eyes was not her life. No- not her childhood, her thirty year marriage with Jackson, not even her two grown children. What ran through her mind was Rusty. Rusty, cooking her breakfast, Rusty sitting on the couch next to her while they watched a movie, Rusty telling her to be careful today. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she thought of him ending up on the street again after she died. She knew that her team would never let that happen, but she couldn't bear the thought of it._

* * *

Just as he put the thin blanket back on her, someone entered the room. Andy turned around to find Rusty looking weakly at Sharon. He had already been in here, and tried to talk to her, but Sharon had not been able to respond. So Rusty had driven home using the car that Sharon let him use, and brought her things that she would need. Setting them on the table in the corner, Rusty met Andy's eyes. He didn't smile, but gave a nod. Rusty was not angry with Andy. Andy was angry with himself. Rusty understood.

"I brought her some things. I have tests in the morning, so Sharon wouldn't want me here." He pointed to each item as Andy walked over. "I brought her a book, Searider Falcon. She loves that book, but I read it to her sometimes. It calms her down."

Andy picked up the book and ran his hand over the cover before looking to the pile again. "I also brought her some pajamas, a change of clothes for tomorrow, some, er…" Rusty's face turned a shade of red. "Yeah, uh. Yeah." He shook his head. "Also her cardigan and her glasses and her favorite blanket. The hospital blankets suck."

Andy watched as Rusty walked over to Sharon and spread the blanket over her. She responded by curling into a tighter ball, but didn't wake up.

"If you could just text me when she wakes up, that would be great. I'm staying at a friend's house tonight, anyway." Andy agreed, and Rusty took one last look to Sharon. Rusty met Andy's eyes and Andy recognized the same flicker of fear that was in Sharon's earlier that evening.

* * *

_Her eyes locked with Andy's. She was deaf to the shouts in her ear, to Julio and Amy demanding that he drop his weapon. Even to the man yelling back. All she saw was the flicker of realization in Andy's eyes as she gave a quick nod and shut her eyes. Suddenly there were more bullets and she was falling._

_She landed hard on the ground and subconsciously rolled away from the man. There was a pain in her abdomen and she knew the feeling all too well._

"_Oh God…" She whispered. Putting a hand over the bullet wound she shut her eyes as blood flowed freely through her fingertips. She could hear people shouting again, but this time she didn't try to listen. The man was dead, and that was all that mattered. Suddenly someone was at her side. _

"_Captain! You need to wake up!" Came a frantic voice._

_She was cold. She was tired. She couldn't bring herself to open her eyes._

"_Captain please." The voice was softer now. She couldn't tell if it was from the person being quieter or from her own ears giving up on her. She opened her eyes. They were fuzzy._

"_Andy…" She whispered. A hand found hers and she weakly grasped it. Someone else put something beneath her head. She winced as someone put forceful pressure on her stomach. She wished she knew who was doing what, because she had a feeling that she may not see them for a while. It was a terrible thought to realize that you may not make it out._

* * *

"She has no idea how dangerous her job is, does she?" Rusty looked at Sharon.

"She-"

"There are realities that she refuses to face."

"Well, that's the thing, of course. She's doing what she thinks is right."

"Well yeah, she's Sharon. Thing is, it probably is the right thing. But sometimes the right thing is a luxury. And it can have profoundly dangerous consequences. And it's almost as if she doesn't want that to be true. Ok, I've got to stop this. I'm going to go now, do you need anything else?" Rusty flipped some hair out of his eyes.

"Yeah. Get a haircut, kid. You want to be able to see the Captain when she wakes up, don't you?"

Rusty smiled slightly. "Yes sir. Bye, Andy."

"Bye kid." Andy watched him shut the door to the room, and then pulled a chair up next to her bed. Opening the book, he found a bookmark and began reading. "Chapter Seven. The raft was not as seaworthy as I'd hoped. The waves repeatedly threatened to swamp it. I wasn't afraid to die. I was afraid of the emptiness that I felt inside." He paused and looked at Sharon. "I couldn't feel anything, and that was what scared me. You came into my thoughts, you filled them. It felt good."

* * *

_She kept hearing people shout for ambulances. They were in a remote location. 'What a way to go out', she thought.' I could write those headlines'. _

"_We're going to carry you out, Sharon." Andy told her. No, no she didn't want to be moved. She wanted to stay here. Moving meant more pain. _

"_No…" She couldn't finish a sentence._

"_Put your arm around me, can you?" Andy's voice asked her._

_She lifted her arm and held it around his neck while he carried her out. It wasn't dark yet, but the sun was setting, leaving the sky a pinkish-orange color. She could hear the paramedics even before he carried her through the door. They came rushing to Andy with a stretcher and Andy laid her down. She missed the contact. She was surrounded by men and women in red and black medical suits. As they pushed her toward the ambulance, he was fading into the distance, and even though her head was foggy and her vision clouded, she could see that he was not following her. She called out to him, but couldn't hear her own voice._

"_Ma'am, you need to calm down, you're worse off than you think." A kind older gentleman said. _

"_No- my team…" she was whispering now._

"_They're all safe. We need to get you to the hospital." He was speaking softly, while putting an oxygen mask over her face. She fought it._

"_I want Andy-"_

"_He'll come." The man turned around and called out Andy's name. _

_Someone was putting a needle in her arm. She was beginning to feel tired. No… No she needed to speak to Andy._

_And then he was there, still covered in her blood, climbing into the ambulance behind the man. She smiled before slipping into a peaceful sleep._

* * *

Sharon opened her eyes. The room she was in was dark, but she had her own blanket on her. She could hear a steady beeping noise, and there was a dark figure next to her. She bolted away from it and hit the bars on the side of the bed, the image of the man filling her mind. The figure bolted awake, too. A lamp came on.

"Sharon!" She opened her eyes at the sound of her name. Andy was sitting on the edge of the bed, leaning towards her.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Andy stopped her, bringing a cup of water to her lips. She obediently drank it, now realizing just how thirsty she was.

"Andy." Was all she said.

He smiled and helped her back into her original position, and checked her stomach to make sure that she hadn't torn her stitches. "Hey."

She responded with a fit of giggles that caused her both tears of joy and tears from her stomach and side hurting. They laughed, laughed until they were both gasping for breath, and then Sharon lay back on her pillow and looked to him. "Remind me never to do that again."

He saluted. "Yes ma'am." He said, then leaned back and looked at her. "You did it, Sharon. You got the missing guy."

She smiled and curled under the blanket more. "Was it worth it, though?" He voice solemn.

"You're alive."

"And we only have one to talk to."

"Well you aren't going to be talking to them anytime soon. You're on bed rest for two weeks according to Dr. Hotshot."

She gave him an annoyed look. "Dang."

He chuckled. They sat in a comfortable silence for a while before Sharon, who was drifting off to sleep, opened her eyes and looked at Andy.

"Will you read more of the book?" She whispered.

He smiled down at her. "Chapter eight…"

* * *

**So should I continue? PM me your ideas for another chapter or put them in the reviews. (I have a little idea, but not a lot.)**

PS: Extra jimmies if you got all of the BSG references. I can't help it, kids.


	2. Bedrest and Nightmares

_I have no life._ Sharon thought as she flipped through the channels for the tenth time. _I have no life whatsoever._

She finally settled on a movie called _'Dances with Wolves'._ It was supposed to be a three hour long movie, and Sharon really had nothing else to do, other than try to ignore the constant pain in her side and stomach whenever she moved. Turning the volume up, she leaned down onto the couch on her good side, and balanced the ice pack on her left.

* * *

She didn't know how long she had been out when she felt the presence of another person in the living room. Opening one eye, she found Provenza sitting in one of her chairs (which he had turned towards the screen), watching the Dodger's game on her television. Slowly sitting up, she reached for her glasses, but felt a pull at her side and remembered her carefully crafted stitches. So, sitting up, she eyed Provenza who seemed too focused on the ballgame to see that she was awake. She cleared her throat, and he turned.

"Ah! Captain, you're awake." He said almost giddily.

"Seems that way." She made a move to get up.

"No, no. Stay put. Flynn sent me with your medication."

She rubbed her forehead while he dug around in his jacket, producing a bottle of pills. "Here you go."

"Thanks" She mumbled, taking the bottle. "Where is Lieutenant Flynn? And where is Rusty?" she said, now realizing that he should be home.

"Oh, he stopped by and brought Rusty to the game-" He pointed to the screen. "Took my ticket…" He grumbled.

"What? What time is it?"

"Around 9:30pm. When he got here you had finally fallen asleep, so he told me to give you your pills and then wait for him to get back. Don't worry, we don't have a case."

Finally satisfied that she had all of the information, Sharon swallowed her medication, and fell back onto the couch. "Thank you, Lieutenant Provenza, but you don't have to-"

"Nonsense." He cut her off, picking up one of her throw blankets. "You just rest, so I don't have to come to your house to see that you are alive." He said, placing the blanket over her.

* * *

Once again Sharon woke up on her couch. Glancing to the strategically placed clock, she realized that it was 10:42pm. Slowly sitting up, she saw that there was a note placed by the clock.

_Hey,  
dropped the kid off and told him to go to bed. Hope you don't sleep forever. I'll be back soon.  
-Andy_

She chuckled, ignoring the slight prick in her side. She realized that she didn't know how long ago Andy put the note there, but she figured it wasn't long ago. Pushing the rest of the blankets off of herself, she walked down the hallway, peeking her head into Rusty's room, and saw that he was asleep. Smiling, she shut the door and moved to her bedroom, getting under the covers. She had to admit, sleeping on the couch all day wasn't the bed idea, but she was surprised and slightly annoyed by how tired she still was.

They had initially agreed after Sharon was discharged that Andy would stay with her for the first few nights. The first few nights had already come and gone, and now she was on her fifth day of bed rest. Andy would have already gone, but something caused him to stay.

The nightmares.

Sharon would get nightmares of her attacker. The therapist that she was supposed to go to explained to Andy that it was a mild form of p.t.s.d. She was shot, he said, and the memories of that trigger much more violent thoughts. For Sharon, that meant that she was often afraid to sleep. She could sleep during the day, as she had been, but it was at night that she would be haunted by her memories. Because, she often reasoned with herself and Andy, at night, one is alone with their own thoughts.

And this is why after beginning the most restful night's sleep he's had in a while; Andy is woken off of the couch by the screams of one Sharon Raydor. Rubbing his eyes groggily, he didn't register what was happening until an equally groggily Rusty stumbled across the hallway next to Sharon's room. He tried to open the door, but found it locked. She did this sometimes, partially out of instinct, partially out of fear. Fear of her own thoughts, or the man coming back. Regardless, neither Andy nor Rusty could get the door open, sending Rusty in search of her extra set of keys, while Andy leaned against the door trying to talk Sharon out of her nightmare.

"Sharon?" Andy tried, barely being heard over the muffled screams. She had her face in a pillow, he realized. "Sharon!" He tried, conscious of the fact that the neighbors might hear, though they were almost completely alone on the floor.

The screaming turned to crying, and a sniffling "Yes?" was heard through the door.

With practiced patience, he spoke very calmly. "Sharon, this is Andy Flynn, remember? Your friend. I need you to open-"

He was met with another scream. Briefly he wondered if she was even awake. Pushing that thought aside, he knocked on the door again, eliciting another muffled scream. Deciding that knocking wasn't a good idea, he started speaking again.

"Sharon, this is Andy Flynn. Your Lieutenant." He thought for a moment, taking note that the screaming had reduced to smaller cries. "I need you to open the door, okay? I can't help you if-"

"I-I can't." She said softly, so soft that Andy wasn't sure that she had said anything.

"Why can't you?"

"I'm scared."

"I believe in you, Sharon. " He rubbed a hand over his face. "I'll help you." Quickly thinking, the lyrics to a song came into his mind and he started humming. Pressing his ear to the door, he heard the comforter shift, signaling that Sharon was moving. Quietly, he started reciting the lyrics.

"Little child, be not afraid  
though rain pounds harsh against the glass  
like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger  
I am here tonight"

He paused while he heard Sharon reach the door. He felt her lean up against it, and heard her trying to stop crying. He continued.

"Little child, be not afraid  
though thunder explodes and lightning flash  
illuminates your tear-stained face  
I am here tonight"

Suddenly the door was being pulled open, and Sharon appeared, tears running down her face. He turned towards her completely, and then without warning, she flung herself into his arms. Burying her face into his chest she began sobbing again, and they sunk to the ground. After a moment, he wrapped both of his arms around her, and felt something warm on her side. Turning her slightly, he lifted up her shirt, and found that she had torn a couple of stiches. Remembering what the doctor had said, he carefully picked her up and brought her to the couch, and then retrieved the first aid kit. When he returned to the couch, Rusty was sitting at her side, and he held back for a moment, to let them be together.

* * *

Rusty watched his foster mother as she struggled to regain good breath. He knew that she liked her space at times, and he could usually tell when she needed a hug or something, but right now he had no idea what was going through her head. She seemed lost in another world, and he had a suspicion that her attack wasn't the only thing that worried her.

"Sharon?" He said quietly, looking up to Andy, who gave a nod.

She physically jumped. "Y-yes, Rusty?"

"I need you to lay on your right side. You tore a couple of stiches, and Andy has to wrap your side."

"Andy?" She looked up at him, but quickly looked down. "Okay." She put her head on the throw pillow, careful not to get any blood on her couch.

Andy came around and kneeled next to Rusty, who was keeping eye contact with Sharon. She really did look like a lost little child. Carefully, he rolled up her shirt so he could see her side, and began wrapping it with new gauze, and taping the torn side up. After he was done, he closed the box and sat on the coffee table. He was sure that Sharon was beginning to fall asleep again, and he had to figure out what to do. Thinking fast, he helped Sharon up and to her bedroom, and Rusty followed. The kid's eyes were already drooping again, but Andy knew that he wouldn't leave Sharon's side. Once she was tucked in, Andy left the room and went to the kitchen.

Pulling out one of the bottles of pills from the cabinet, he inspected the label. The doctor had given her a special prescription to help her sleep. Sharon generally preferred not to use them because they made her even more tired the next day than she already was. Making a mug of tea, he dissolved one of the pills in it and brought it to Sharon. Walking into the room, he saw that Rusty was sitting on the edge of the bed, facing Sharon who was propped up with several pillows. She was still shaking a bit, but seemed to have calmed down.

"Here" He said, handing her the mug. "Drink up."

She took the cup with trembling hands, and Rusty helped her guide it to her mouth to take a sip. Afterwards, he took the cup and placed it on the bedside table. "Rusty, you can go back to bed now."

"But Sharon-"

"Rusty." She gave him a warning look. "No buts. You have school tomorrow, and you were already out late."

He waited a beat, and then nodded. Leaning towards her, he looked her in the eyes. "Are you sure you will be okay?"

She half smiled. "Yes. And if not, Lt. Flynn has agreed to stay."

Rusty gave Flynn a wary look. "Okay, but if you need-"

"Goodnight, Rusty."

"Yes ma'am." He fake saluted and started towards the door. "Andy, can I talk to you first?"

Andy looked up surprised. "Sure kid." He followed him out, but made sure to keep Sharon in his line of view. "What's up?"

"I think something else is on her mind. I mean, I know that getting shot can make you all nervous and scared, but it shouldn't be THIS bad, should it?" He played with the end of his shirt.

Andy thought a moment. "Well…" He started, trying to think of a good response. "Sometimes, getting shot in the line of duty can, yes, bring up memories of other times when one was hurt or traumatized. I just can't recall any other time that Sharon was hurt."

Rusty shrugged. "Well, I-uh, I just worry about her. I don't want her to be like, permanently like this. Maybe we should get her to see the therapist with us. Isn't she technically supposed to be going?"

Andy grinned, looking back to her. "Yeah, she is. We'll talk in the morning, kid. Get some sleep." He ruffled his hair a bit. "Hey, didn't I tell you to get a haircut?" He said, jokingly.

Rusty smiled. "Yeah, you did. I'll see about actually remembering to make an appointment on Saturday. 'Night, Flynn."

"Goodnight, Rusty." Andy put his hands in his pockets and walked back into Sharon's room. She had finished her tea and had replaced the pillows on the other side and was only half sitting up now, clearly getting tired. Andy stood by the bedside table and smiled. "Ready for bed?"

She lay down further. "You have no idea. Will you shut off the light? You can leave the door open."

"Sure." He did so, and opened the door a little further, leaving a cast of light from the kitchen safe lights flooding in. He sat back in the chair and shut his eyes. He wanted to be sure she was okay before he really fell asleep. After about ten minutes, or so it felt, he heard Sharon.

"Andy?" She whispered.

"Yeah?" He said, opening his eyes.

"You can have the bed, too. If you'd like."

"No, it's-"

"Andy, will you?"

He sat up. "Will I what?"

She shifted. "Sleep in the bed with me?"

"Are you sure?" He stood up.

"Yes."

Andy slowly walked around to the right side of the bed and lay down on top of the covers. Seeing a blanket at the bottom of the bed, he picked that up and spread it over himself. He heard Sharon cough.

"Andy?" She said, even softer than before.

"Yeah?"

"Will, I mean, would you mind holding me?" Her voice was shaking a bit.

He didn't answer for a bit.

"You don't have to, I just-" Sharon started, as if embarrassed that she asked.

"No, no it's fine." He got under the real covers and scooted closer to her, wrapping his arms around her. She placed her hands on his arms as they rested on her, and let out a soft sigh.

"It's been a long time since I've done this."

"Since someone has held you in bed?" He said, and he had the fleeting thought that maybe he was overstepping his boundaries by making a comment like that.

"No." She said, her tone content. "Since I've felt safe."

Andy pondered this for a moment, but stopped when she turned in his arms so that her head was in his chest again. "Goodnight, Sharon." He said, resting his chin on her head, her long hair tickling him as she moved.

"Goodnight, Andy."

* * *

**Well? What'd ya think, kids? Leave me a little review, pretty please?  
****(This fic is also interactive, so any ideas can be put there, too. I read all reviews before writing.)**


	3. Our Little Kind-Of Normal

**A/N: Some of the reasons why I am a failure in the Fanfiction world.**

**1: Our power went out during two big storms almost two weeks ago, and so I lost all 1,765 words of what I had written previously.  
2: I got too lazy to rewrite all of those 1,756 words.  
3: Yeah.**

**I guess you can enjoy this, but it's really your choice. :) *See end note also***

* * *

Andy rolled over in bed. Finding it surprisingly empty, he opened his eyes and found that it was not even 5:30 in the morning. Groaning, he got up, tucking his shirt back in. Opening the door, he looked out and felt a breeze. Glancing into the living room, he found that the sliding glass door was open. He walked over and shut it, turning towards the kitchen. Sharon was sitting with what he assumed was orange juice. He moved over and sat next to her at the bar.

"Good morning." He said.

"I wanted to apologize for last night." She said bluntly. "It was completely inappropriate, and you no longer need to spend nights. I'm fine by myself."

He was taken aback. "Sharon, its okay…"

"No, Andy, it's not. In fact, you have work. So why don't you just go now." Her voice held a forced firmness, and he couldn't place her mood.

Slowly getting up, he looked down at her. She was fingering the side of her glass. "I'll see you at your therapy session?"

"Goodbye, Andy." She didn't look up at him.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Bye, Sharon."

Rusty awoke to the sound of the front door closing. Quickly getting up, he went straight to Sharon's bedroom, finding it empty. He then went to the kitchen, expecting to find Flynn. When he instead found Sharon, he looked her up and down. She looked rigid, but okay.

"Where's Andy?" He asked.

She looked up at him. She had a look in her eyes, and it didn't put him at ease. "He had to go to-a… crime scene."

He watched her for a bit, then nodded slowly. "Sharon, are you okay?"

She quickly got up and groaned. "Why does everyone keep asking me that?!" She yelled, agitated. "I'm just fine!"

Rusty put his hands up. "Sorry, I just…"

"I know. It's just, I'm fine, okay?" She tried to assure him.

"Okay." He went to the refrigerator. "What would you like for breakfast?"

* * *

Sharon swallowed her third pill. She wasn't about to let this injury slow her down. Sitting at her desk, she reopened the case file that she had bribed Tao into bringing for her. Rusty was due home soon, and he was supposed to bring her to the therapist. Lord only knew why she even had to go. The point was, bed rest wasn't working for her, and she didn't have time to stay in bed for two weeks without doing anything. Taking a pill whenever her energy was running out so far was working, and she was feeling pretty good, if a bit dizzy.

She heard a lock jiggling in a key and turned her seat around. Rusty walked in the door.

"Hey Sharon!" He said.

She leaned back in her chair, playing with a pen. "Hello, Rusty. How was your day?"

"Great. I have a permission slip for you to sign, we're going to some amusement park for the end of the year."

She smiled. He seemed so enthusiastic. "Okay." Taking the offered paper, she placed it on the desk and clicked her pen. But as she looked down, the letters swam on the page. Shaking her head, she once again moved her pen towards the paper, but couldn't focus on the line. Looking up, she saw that Rusty had moved to the kitchen. She took a small sip of her cup of water, then set it back down. Then, everything went dark.

* * *

Rusty walked back in with a sandwich. "Sharon?" He said nervously, not hearing her respond. His eyes found the desk, and the plastic plate crashed to the floor. He leaned over her, trying to see if she was breathing. Which on of their neighbors was a doctor? Apartment 14c...

"I'll be back Sharon." He said, scared, and ran out the door, not bothering to shut it. Tearing down the hallway, he knocked frantically on the door of the man.

The door opened on the fifth knock. "What?!" An older man stepped out. Rusty had met him briefly at a building party, but Sharon knew him.

Rusty stuck his hand out. "Rusty Beck."

The man didn't take it. "Sherman Cottle. What do you want?"

"My, um, Foster mom..." He trailed off, practically bouncing with fear.

"Sharon?" The older man softened.

"She's not conscious. I think she collapsed." Rusty finally said.

The man's eyes grew wide. "Come on, kid." He said, slamming his door and grabbing Rusty by the collar. When they reached the door, he threw it open and found Sharon, laying with her head on her arms on her desk top. He swiftly picked her up and carried her to the couch, laying her on her side. Taking blankets, he covered her, then propped her up with pillows. "Is she taking any medication?

Rusty located her pill bottle.

* * *

Sharon opened her eyes. Looking up, she blinked wearily. "What happened?" She asked to nobody in particular.

"You were stupid." Came a gruff voice from behind her. Covering her eyes with one hand, she looked down. "Hello, Doctor Cottle."

"Is she awake?"

"Rusty?"

"Sharon!" He propelled himself onto the edge of the couch, clutching her.

"I'm okay."

"She's stupid."

Sharon looked over Rusty's shoulder. "Says the Doctor who smokes."

"I'm military. I do what I want." He smirked.

"Right." Letting go of Rusty, she sat up more fully and looked at Sherman.

**"**How many of these did you take, young lady? One? Two?"

"Two." She answered, earning a disbelieving look.

"Three." She whispered.

The doctor shook his head. "Three times the dosage. Must work three times as fast then, right? Everybody wants to be their own doctor. You are lucky you didn't lapse into a coma. You can't cure this by overdose."

"I know." She sighed. "So, what now?"

"Well according to Mister Apollo-"

"It's Rusty." Rusty interrupted.

Cottle turned to him. "When you work as a marine and then as a doctor all your life, then _you _can decide what I want to call you." He turned back to Sharon. "Now, I can give you a shot, but you won't like the side effects."

She shook her head and rolled up her sleeve. "Just.. do it."

Cottle raised an eyebrow. "It's not that kind of a shot."

"Wo-oah!" Rusty shot his arms up. "I'll be waiting in the car, Sharon." He said, slamming the door.

* * *

..."Getting at least eight hours of sleep?"

"Yes."

"Taking your pills?"

"Mhmm."

"I'll take that as a maybe."

"What?"

Dr. Norman looked across the coffee table at her. "I know you too well, Mrs. Raydor."

"That's a little concerning."

"It's my job."

"Fair enough." She raised her hands.

"And how are the nightmares?" He said, leaning forward.

Sharon guessed she was silent for a bit too long.

"What are they this time?"

She pulled her sleeves over her hands. "They aren't about my father anymore."

"That's good." He encouraged.

"They only happen about twice or three times a week." She looked down at the end of her shirt which was suddenly very interesting. "I usually just stay in my room though so I don't wake Rusty."

Dr. Norman took a note. "What about Lt. Flynn?"

She looked up suddenly. "I told him I didn't need him there anymore."

"That's why he isn't here today?"

"Yes."

Setting his papers down, Dr. Norman put his elbows on his knees. "Well, Sharon, that's it for today. Come back next week at the same time, or earlier if you need to." Sharon began getting up. "And Sharon?" He said.

"Yes?"

"Don't fight this alone. PTSD isn't a solitary condition. You aren't alone, so don't try to be." He gave her a reassuring smile.

"Okay." She tried to smile back, but it never happened. As she opened the door, she found Rusty sitting on the couch waiting for her. He didn't look up from her laptop and seemed to not notice that she had finished her session. Slowy, she walked over and sat next to him. he finished typing and then shut the laptop, putting it back in her case.

"Ready to go?" He asked quietly.

She took a deep breath. "Not just yet."

"Okay."

They sat in silence for a while until Sharon patted his hand, and they got up.

* * *

Rusty watched as Sharon moved around the kitchen. He was trying to be supportive of her wanting to make dinner, but every time she would come close to hitting something or getting too close to a burner, he would practically leap from his chair. It was making him edgy and Sharon agitated.

Finally he stopped 'focusing' on his homework and looked up at her. "Don't you think you should be sitting down while doing that?"

She added a cup of something to the skillet. "Doing what?"

"Cooking dinner."

"I can cook just fine." She protested. "Rusty, I'm trying to make life normal again, and this isn't helping." She sighed, not turning towards him.

"Sha-"

She cursed when her arm came into contact with a burner.

"See?" He cried. "You're going to get yourself killed!"

They both froze.

It slipped out without him trying. He took a step towards her. She still didn't turn around, but instead slowly turned off the burner and placed the pan on a hot pad. fixing a plate in silence, she finally turned around and looked at Rusty. She didn't have tears in her eyes, though. Sharon Raydor would not let this cause her to weaken even more. Straightening up, she grabbed a fork form the bar.

"Dinner's ready." She said in a small tone, and brought her plate to her bedroom, shutting the door.

Rusty waited until he heard the door click shut before moving to fix himself a plate. Sitting back down at the table, he continued his homework.

And then, only when everything from the kitchen was put away, the leftovers in Tupperware jars, and the lights off, did he find himself outside of her bedroom door. Not bothering to knock, he opened it, his apology on his lips, realizing that she was asleep. He tiptoed over to her bedside table, taking the plate and fork, and pulled the covers over her further.

"Goodnight Sharon." He whispered.

Then he left the room.

* * *

**I'm thinking of having the next chapter being Sharon's first day back to work. Any ideas on what the case should be? Interactions with others?  
Or it you don't like that idea, what should happen next?**

**Hope you liked it!**


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